Empty Mirrors
by Biscuit15
Summary: When Bel is hit by the malfunctioning Ten-Year Bazooka, he is replaced instead by his sixteen-year-old self. Who's the (un)lucky one put in charge of looking after him? Gokudera, of course. Yaoi, TYL!59B, TYL!Gokudera x Bel.
1. Chapter 1

Missions with the Varia were what Gokudera hated, and missions where he had to fly back to Italy in order to group with them were what he resented – and when he was paired specifically with his Varia counterpart and expected to get along with the smug bastard instead of killing him…

Well, Gokudera wasn't sure anything could top that on his list of things he loathed.

"Oi, knife bastard." Gokudera scowled as his unwanted companion shot him an innocent look that just didn't fit with the picture; how could_ anyone _be innocent whilst standing over a dead body they had just been prodding with a knife? "That's the last of them. Let's go."

"Shishi~" Standing up, the blond slid his knife back into his pocket before cocking his head to the side. "Hayato-kun is forgetting that we're meant to be meeting up with the others before we leave~"

"Tch…" Gokudera hated how Belphegor was always on the ball, nothing escaping his genius mind, no matter how often he pretended to forget things in order to laze about in his room for a while longer. "Whatever…"

Falling into stride with his official arch nemesis, Gokudera grudgingly allowed the other to lead; as much as he hated to admit it, he wasn't sure where the last two members of their small team had agreed to meet upon finishing their duties, and there was _no way _he was giving Bel the satisfaction of hearing this out loud; giving in like this was enough of a blow to his pride.

Feeling his face pale when Bel raised a bloodstained hand to his lips to lick at the sticky red fluid, Gokudera was sure he was about to throw up. "You're a real creep, you know that?"

Bel hummed in response, his smile stretching to a size that emphasised his clear instability. "I am a prince; not a creep."

"Same thing…" Gokudera crossed his arms against his chest in a stubborn manner, a grumpy aura about him; he would certainly be glad to get back to Japan and report to Tsuna, wanting to leave Italy and everyone in it behind. "Where are they, anyway?"

"The Lightning pervert said to meet by the staircase." Looking up at his silver-haired companion, Bel cocked his head to the side. "Your Lightning Guardian is rather annoying, more so than my froggy. I want to kill him but Xanxus said no."

"Lay a finger on the cow and you'll fucking regret it, bastard," Gokudera hissed, descending the staircase he assumed was their meeting spot; it had been the only one they had climbed in order to clear out the top of the building, so he must be right.

A knowing smirk crossed the blond's face at these words, licking at his lips. "Speaking of peasants, he's still quite the cry-baby, isn't he?"

"What do you – shit." Gokudera glanced down across the railing as the unmistakable cries of the Vongola Lightning filled the air. He briefly cursed the blond and his superior hearing when the Bovino came running towards them in a hasty manner, most likely uninjured and simply being his cowardly self. "Oi! You stupid cow!"

Lambo changed course as he noticed the older two, but before he could approach them, he tripped on the bottom of the staircase and hit his face on the rails. In his distress, he got back to his feet, pulling his Ten Year Bazooka out from wherever he had hidden it. He swung it around, hitting it against the small confines of the area, and it was quick to leave his hands as he tripped once again on the staircase.

Gokudera watched as the Bazooka headed straight towards his blond companion, the other's usual smile replaced instead by an unreadable expression as Bel continued to stand there with his hands in his pocket, making no attempt at moving out of the way – but then again, the silver-haired male reminded himself, it would have been pointless to move as the Bazooka had been upgraded a few years ago with tracking capabilities, locking on to the closest source of body heat; Bel probably wouldn't have had a chance anyway.

In a puff of smoke, Gokudera couldn't help but admit he was a tad curious as to what the Belphegor of the future would be like, but when a much smaller form became clear through the haze, he couldn't help but frown; was that stupid Bazooka malfunctioning once again?

"Shishi~ Are you the Vongola's bomb brat? You look a lot older."

When sixteen-year-old Belphegor stood in front of Gokudera with that same shit-eating grin that the blond was rarely seen without, the Vongola Guardian found himself wishing he could throw a handful of bombs at Lambo for what he had caused; as irritating, egotistical, spoilt and violent as Belphegor was, his adult self was somewhat tolerable compared to his volatile, seemingly-bi-polar, bratty teenage self.

"Hey, bomb brat?" Bel stepped closer, cocking his head to the side as the cogs in his head turned within seconds of this new development. "Where am I? The Bovino Bazooka hit me, right? But I've never seen this place before. This isn't Italy, is it?"

"No." Gokudera couldn't help but snarl at the now-younger male, his temper breaking already as memories of his teenage years with the blond resurfaced, making him hate the other more than ever; he had thought he was finally free of the insufferable male and his self-entitled attitude, but now he was stuck with the person he loathed the most, at the same age his resentment was strongest.

Life really fucking hated him, didn't it?

"Then where are we?" Sneering down at the Bovino still sniffling away, Bel stepped past Lambo in order to approach the closest window.

"Sweden." Gokudera moved to follow the teenager, putting his hand on the younger's shoulder in order to spin him around and face him. "Listen, you little – what the fuck?!"

The silver-haired man yelped as he pulled his hand back to his own person, his green eyes wide as they took in the sight of blood dribbling down his flesh from the set of teeth marks that had just been left in his skin.

"Did you just _bite _me?!" Gokudera was ready to snap that scrawny little neck, but the set of knives that were being held out in a threatening manner deterred him; he knew his Varia counterpart would find sheer joy in using them on him.

"Peasants shouldn't touch royalty." A firm frown was on Bel's face now, agitation wafting from him. He growled when Gokudera reached out to him again with the intention of hitting him, dropping his knives as he lunged forward and buried his teeth into the calloused flesh once more.

Yup. It was official. If Gokudera had to deal with this brat of a teenager again, life _definitely _fucking_ despised_ him.


	2. Chapter 2

"When are you coming to take him back?" Gokudera sounded calm as he spoke to the Varia's Sun over the phone, but on the inside, he felt like committing first degree murder that _wasn't _endorsed by his boss' hesitant orders.

Lussuria laughed on the other end of the line before saying, "Oh, dear, you've misunderstood me; we aren't coming to get him; _you _can keep him until he's back to normal. We don't want him."

"What?" Gokudera shot a scathing look over at the blond who had followed him into his hotel room without invitation and was now rummaging through his belongings. "I don't want him, either! He's _yours!_"

"Yes, but we already dealt with him once when he was sixteen; we aren't subjecting ourselves to that again, hon. Have fun~"

Gokudera cursed as the call was ended, wishing with all his being he could just throw a stick of dynamite at the nuisance and be done with it all. As if reading his thoughts, Bel turned around, a pair of the silver-haired man's boxers in hand.

"Hey, Hayato-kun, do you think these would fit me?" Stretching the elastic in a manner that Gokudera perceived as taunting, Bel's smile widened. "Maybe not; I don't think there will be enough room for my dick to breathe."

"What the – what's _that _supposed to mean?!"

"That I'm bigger than you." Throwing the boxes aside onto the pile he had made, Bel continued on with his task of seeing what Gokudera owned.

"Oi, you little shit!" Having long-since matured, the Vongola Storm was no longer one who would reach for his weapons every time he lost his cool; he instead stood up, moving over to the younger in order to tower over him. "You wanna get blown that badly?"

Gokudera's breathing hitched as he realised what he had said, knowing how easily his words could be misconstrued – and when it came to Bel, there was _nothing_ the blond couldn't twist back in a sexual manner.

However, as if he were oblivious to the unintentional innuendo, Bel just continued pulling things out of the suitcase, humming as he scanned the items into his mind and stored them there for later consideration.

"Hey!" Gokudera reached out, snatching the bottle of lube from the boy's hand that had just been picked up. "Stay out of my shit!"

The older male had truly expected for the taunting, the endless barrage of sexual comments he _knew _the blond wouldn't hold back on, but to his shock, they never came; Bel just looked at him for a few seconds before shrugging, almost as if he hadn't even made the connection as to what lube could be used for. "Do you use that with your dynamite or something, bomb brat?"

While it was true Bel had a genuine curiosity about how his Vongola counterpart's bombs worked, there was no _way _that would be what the blond's ten-years later self would ask; there would be teasing, comments about Gokudera being unable to get laid – anything but _that_. "…"

"Well?" Turning to look back at the older male, Bel cocked his head to the side. "Why do you look so embarrassed?"

Shaking his head, Gokudera snapped himself out of his thoughts. "Why would _you _care what I use it for?"

"It was a question; you're obviously using it for something else if you're getting so defensive over me asking about it. What _are _you using it for, then?"

"None of your fucking business! Hey, do you mind? I have to use that, you know?!" Gokudera growled as the boy ran his thumb against the tip of his toothbrush. "Who knows what you've been doing since you last washed your hands?"

"I am a prince; I wash my hands every time before I eat or have used the toilet, and especially when I have touched something questionable. I take care of my hygiene, but do _you,_ Hayato-kun?"

"How do I know you weren't jerking yourself off minutes before the Bazooka hit you?"

"Huh?" Blinking beneath long bangs, Bel cocked his head to the side. There was no deception, no hidden motive for doing so that Gokudera could sense; just simply a boy who didn't quite understand what he had been accused of.

"Are you stupid or something?" Gokudera stepped forward again, nudging the younger with his boot. "You know what I'm talking about; don't play dumb."

"I really am not sure as to what you're referring to." No trickery was picked up in the other's mannerisms, instead simple, plain confusion; Bel really _didn't _get it, did he? "I've never heard that terminology anywhere."

"What the fuck?" Gokudera shook his head. "Look at who you live with; there's no way you _haven't _heard it before."

Standing up in order to stretch, Bel made his way over to the single bed in the room. He dropped himself down on it and curled up into a ball, lifting his head to look at Gokudera. "Yeah, but I stay in my room all the time. I only come out to play with Mammon's puffy cheeks and to eat; I don't really talk to the others."

"Can you get off my bed?" Gokudera scowled down at the boy, his fingers twitching as he held back the impulse to push the young prince off the mattress just to see how he reacted. "In fact, get out of my room; you have your own further down the hall. Go bother your perverted Lightning Guardian or something."

"No, I don't want to." Bel pouted childishly, dragging his knees to his chest as he made himself more comfortable. "This is my room, now. I expect the peasant to bring my belongings in to me and relocate elsewhere."

"Oi, this is _my _room!"

"Nu-uh; I claimed it, so it's mine now. I am a prince; I can do whatever I want."

"Jeez, no wonder the Varia dumped you on me and don't want you back." Gokudera rolled his eyes, his irritation growing further. "But, hey; I don't want you, either; I want to abandon you somewhere just to get you out of my hair."

Bel shrugged, his smile never faltering. "I am used to no one wanting me, so I made sure to never _need _anyone to want me. I can survive on my own quite easily; I don't _want _to be wanted. And as for abandonment, I experienced that very early on; it does not hurt me anymore. Wasn't it the same for you, bomb brat?"

"I…" Gokudera took a moment to collect himself, understanding exactly what it was like to belong nowhere, to have to fight for survival and not understand what it was like to be wanted by someone. But how could Bel even _consider _putting them on the same level? The blond was an unstable, violent little shit who murdered for fun – everything Gokudera was _not. _Feeling his irritation build up, he spat out, "I don't _care_ what you think, you little shit; don't act like you know me because I am _far _from being like you. Get out of my room, knife bastard."

Bel shrugged again, making no attempt at moving off the bed. "You're more like me than you care to realise, Hayato-kun. Anyway, I'm going to sleep. My things had better be here by the time I wake up, peasant."

If this were ten years ago, Gokudera would have thrown a fit over the blond taking his room like this, but instead he simply sighed and moved to sit on the couch, knowing that Bel wasn't going to budge any time soon.

Turning the TV on, Gokudera allowed his thoughts to run rampart, trying to ignore the soft snores that soon came from behind him.

At least Bel wasn't _too _annoying when he was sleeping; hopefully he would spend most of his time that way.

_**~~XX~~**_

When dinner rolled around and Bel still hadn't woken, Gokudera could admit he was the tiniest fraction concerned; it had been close to nine hours since he had 'claimed' his Vongola counterpart's room for himself and gone to sleep, and the blond hadn't woken in the slightest since then; was this normal behaviour for the younger? Gokudera knew that Bel was lazy and slept a lot, but _this _amount of sleep…? If this were the usual for him, it was no wonder the Varia Storm was grouchy a lot of the time.

Getting up from his couch, Gokudera moved to the boy's side. He looked down at the sleeping form, surprised to see that the devious smile Bel tended to don was absent tonight, replaced instead by a firm frown. Thin fingers gripped tight the bed sheets beneath the younger, an aura of distress wafting from Bel.

"Oi, knife bastard." Gokudera knew better than to touch the other; even as an adult, Bel hadn't liked touch, and the lifestyle he lived ensured that if someone were to touch him in his sleep or otherwise allow him to feel threatened, he would wake with nothing but killing on his mind. "Get up."

When the smaller male didn't even stir, Gokudera sighed; he was going to have to take drastic measures, because there was no _way _he was letting the volatile boy become sleepless tonight; that would only result in _him _losing sleep by having to deal with the younger.

Moving away from the bed, Gokudera searched the hotel room for the most harmless object he could find. After deciding that the room wouldn't readily supply him with something that didn't automatically look threatening to someone just waking up, he went to his own suitcase and sifted through things.

Grabbing the bottle of lube Bel had been playing with earlier, Gokudera stood up and carried it over to the far side of the room, knowing that if any knives were to come flying at him, he could quickly slip inside the bathroom and lock the door until Bel calmed down.

"Get up, freak." Throwing the bottle as hard as he could, Gokudera couldn't help but feel a little satisfied at the loud thump that sounded when it landed hard on the blond's head. He was alert as the boy immediately sat up, a handful of knives in his hands as he looked around for any immediate threat. To the silver-haired male's relief, Bel disregarded him as a danger and instead turned his attention to see what had hit him.

"Hayato-kun…" Bel sighed as he picked up the bottle of lube, tossing it onto the ground in an annoyed manner. "Hayato-kun, why would you do that?"

"Because you wouldn't wake up when I told you to." Shrugging, the Italian-Japanese male slipped his hands into the pockets of his coat as he closed the distance between them. "Do you always sleep for so long?"

Stifling a yawn, Bel then asked, "What time is it?"

"Eight. I figured I should get you up for dinner so you wouldn't wake up some time through the night and wake _me _up to bitch that you're hungry."

Ignoring this accusation, Bel cocked his head to the side. Chewing at his lips, he then said in a slow, soft voice that Gokudera read as one of uncertainty, "…No… I don't usually sleep that long…"

"So why did you?"

Shrugging, Bel turned away. "I don't need to talk about my problems to _you _of all people, Hayato-kun."

Gokudera wasn't stupid; he knew what it was like to be unexpectedly stuck in a timeline that wasn't his; when he and his friends had had the fight with Byakuran, he hadn't been the only one scared and confused by everything, feeling trapped with no way out; surely Bel could be feeling just as disconcerted as they had back then, if not more so.

Despite having worked on and off with the Varia for ten years, none of the Vongola really knew all that much about the other members; they were distant, closed off, and didn't seem to want the slightest thing to be known about them. Maybe they were all a paranoid bunch, but Gokudera had worked with Bel enough to work out that the blond was probably the most paranoid of them all, and in _this _situation, all he had was his princely pride to get him through.

"You're confronted by this timeline you really have no knowledge of, aren't you?" Gokudera didn't miss the way Bel's lips twitched, his fingers curling instinctively around air as if to grasp the handles of his knives. "It's really in your face, right? I guess even a genius such as yourself has to be a little apprehensive; I often hear that it's the people who think they have everything down pat that are frightened the most when faced with the unexpected."

Bel growled, hating that Gokudera had been sincere at the start, but then had taunted him; yes, he was feeling a little anxious about this new development, everything he knew about the world perhaps irrelevant right now – but he wasn't going to let _anyone _know that even _he _could be a little nervous of things at times. "Shut up, peasant. Forget this petty conversation; I want food."

Gokudera sneered, reaching out to pinch pale cheeks. In a tone thick with sarcasm, he said, "You think you're so _precious, _but you really have no choice but to rely on me in this situation. You should rethink being your usual bratty, spoilt self, because I could always leave you alone in this unfamiliar world and see if you can make it on your own."

"Of course I can!" Bel swiped a knife at the other, agitated further by such an arrogant touch. "I don't _need _you!"

"Oh, trust me; you will. You have no idea how to fight in this timeline; you'll get stomped."

"I'm a _prince_!" Bel waved his arms in the air, his frustration obvious. "And I'm a Varia member! I won't lose to _anybody_!"

Gokudera chuckled. "Actually, I remember you losing a couple of times. You shouldn't be such a snobby, arrogant brat, because if it weren't for the Tenth wanting me to keep you alive, I would be only too happy to let you go out and get your head torn off your neck."

"That won't happen!"

"We'll see." A knowing smirk crossed Gokudera's face, reaching out to pat a blond head in mock soothing. "We'll see, _Bel-chan _– oi, stop fucking biting me, you little shit!"

Bel just sunk his teeth in harder before finally letting go and making his way towards the door. If Gokudera was only going to sit here and taunt him instead of taking him to food, he would just have to find it himself.

Wait until Gokudera sees just how well he can handle himself, even in an unfamiliar timeline. He'd soon learn to trust in his abilities, Bel would make sure of that.


	3. Chapter 3

By the time the four Mafioso arrived back in Japan to report to Tsuna, Bel was more agitated than usual; apparently he didn't do well with jetlag. Both Leviathan and Lambo had been only too happy to have a separate Vongola limo drive them back to headquarters, leaving Bel and Gokudera to share one together; they didn't want to be the ones dealing with the blond, already willing to murder him in his sleep; he took _a lot _of effort to deal with, and not a single one of them wanted to exert said energy.

As expected, Gokudera was ready to kill the other in the slowest, most painful method he could think of, the boy's lack of regard towards others' personal space more apparent than usual; the blond seemed to think that his older companion was nothing more than a pillow, continuously trying to lay against the Vongola Storm or across his lap, and whenever the man protested and shoved him away, he received a sharp jab to his ribs with the tip of the Varia Guardian's knife.

And now, finally, after arriving at the Vongola mansion, Gokudera was only too happy to dive out of the car and leave Bel curled up on the seat, glad to get away from the younger.

Entering the Vongola mansion, the silver-haired male found Ryohei and Yamamoto standing by the staircase, talking amongst themselves. They fell silent at their companion's approach, two sets of hardened eyes staring at him questioningly.

"What?" Reaching into his pocket, the Storm Guardian pulled a packet of cigarettes from his jacket. "Don't give me that look."

"We heard from Tsuna who heard from Lussuria that Belphegor got hit by the bazooka, and that he'd be staying with us until it wears off." Looking all around Gokudera in search of the Varia member, Yamamoto frowned. "Where is he?"

"In the car or some shit; I don't know." Shaking off the accusing looks the taller two were giving him, Gokudera narrowed his eyes. "I can't fucking stand him and he's done nothing but piss me off! Why can't the fucking Varia come back for him or something?"

"He's just a kid, and he doesn't know how to fight here." Shaking his head, Yamamoto sighed. "You should be looking after him to make sure he doesn't get hurt."

"The little shit can look after himself; he can get hurt for all I fuckin' care..."

While Ryohei left the conversation, angered by the younger's attitude yet not wanting to start more conflict, Yamamoto continued trying; he wasn't going to stand by and let Gokudera hurt someone like this. "He likes you most out of us; he won't listen to any other Vongola."

"And he doesn't even listen to me as it is! I hate the little shit; every time I look at him, I want to strangle him! Just send him back to Italy!"

"If you want to get rid of me that badly, you could have just said."

Turning around at the unexpected voice, the Rain and Storm guardians both frowned at the sight of Bel standing by them, his bag in hand as he donned a stoic expression.

"I already know neither of you like me; I wouldn't have cared if you said it to my face. What I_ do_ care about is being talked about behind my back. I'll go back to Italy myself; I don't need to associate with your kind."

"Bel..." While Yamamoto genuinely felt bad for the boy, Gokudera simply sneered and walked away.

Calling over his shoulder, the Vongola Storm casually said, "Try and be gone by tonight so I don't have to look at you during dinner."

Bel's expression remained emotionless at these words, but he didn't reply to them; he simply carried his bag up the stairs, intending on finding a room for him to take shelter in while he figured out what to do.

It was clear that here was the same as everywhere else; no matter where he went, he wasn't wanted by anyone.

_**~~XX~~ **_

Lifting his head from the pillow an uncertain amount of time later, Bel found the Vongola Decimo stepping into his room.

"Yamamoto told me you overheard him and Gokudera-kun talking." The brunet was soft, his eyes full of concern. "I've already spoken to Gokudera-kun about his behaviour. Please don't go back to Italy; you're welcome here, even if Gokudera-kun says otherwise."

Shrugging, Bel said, "I'll leave; I don't want to be here anyway; I want to play with Mammon's puffy cheeks again."

Tsuna wasn't stupid; he knew what the blond meant: Bel was lonely without Mammon, probably the reason he was acting out.

"Levi's the only one in Italy at the moment anyway; he went back a few hours ago, and everyone else is busy."

Bel didn't reply back to this; he simply started picking at his jacket, annoyed already with this conversation.

"Bel?"

"You've got five seconds to get out of my room before I turn you into a cactus." Reaching into his pocket, the boy's hand resurfaced with a handful of knives. "I don't care that the boss and his bitch will yell at me; get out."

Tsuna hesitated, but he did as told; he knew that Bel would do as he had threatened. "..."

Watching as the Vongola Decimo left the room, Bel dropped his knives to the bed; he was agitated, but he wasn't entirely sure of why; was it because that, even though he knew Gokudera had never liked him, it actually _hurt _to hear his Vongola counterpart talking about him like that? Part of Bel had _liked _the silver-haired male, kind of like how he liked Mammon, but different in a way even he as a genius couldn't quite work out; he had never felt like that towards anyone but Squalo before, and even then, it hadn't lasted very long; those feelings had disappeared after a couple of months, unlike with Gokudera, which had begun shortly after their fight and were still present.

Rolling onto his back, Bel looked up at the roof, wishing Mammon were there with him so that he could hug her close and fall into a peaceful sleep; the Mist Arcobaleno was truly the one and only friend he had _ever _had.

But… Sometimes the blond couldn't help but lay awake at night and wonder… What would it be like to have Gokudera as a friend, too…?

Somehow, Bel didn't think he would ever find out.

_**~~XX~~**_

It hadn't taken very long for Bel to find a clear path out of the Vongola mansion, noticing that with all the guardians gathered together in the one room downstairs, there was really no one else there to stop him from sneaking out; having checked for flights back to Italy, he was dismayed to find that there would be no more leaving for a few days at the very least, leaving him to feel trapped in that unfamiliar room.

Boredom picking away at his mind already, Bel knew he needed to get out and find something to entertain him lest he go crazier than he already was; he hated having nothing to do, finding that if he were left to nothing but his thoughts, he slowly drowned himself in feelings that did nothing but unhinge him further.

Even Bel knew that thinking was bad for him.

Opening the front door to the mansion, the boy snuck outside, eventually escaping through the front gate after having stolen a card from downstairs to open them. Now that he was out in the open, the first thing for him to do was find his way into town, and hope to stem the monotony with a few slow murders.

However, what he failed to notice in his greatly agitated state was that he wasn't alone; he was, in fact, outnumbered.

_**~~XX~~**_

As the Vongola Decimo's right-hand man, Gokudera took Guardian meetings very seriously; he always sat at attention, ready to shut anyone up who made a fuss, and was willing to personally handle anything his boss couldn't do.

Sitting by Tsuna's side, Gokudera hung on to every word the brunet spoke, especially when the topic turned into one of warning, Tsuna having become aware of suspicious activity around the mansion.

"I've had Ryohei looking into it, and I don't believe there's a huge cause for alarm just yet, but I would like for everyone to remain vigilant; we don't know what they're after, or how many of them there are."

Before anyone could reply, there was a soft knock on the door and one of the staff entered, a look of uncertainty on her face. "I am very sorry to interrupt, but your guest has left the gates open at his departure."

Tsuna's eyes widened with deep concern, instantly assuming the worst; if Bel had wandered off, and someone was still hanging around…

Bel was in serious danger, and he wouldn't stand a chance in this timeline.

"Everyone go out and look for Belphegor!" Getting to his feet, Tsuna couldn't help but bark his order; the last thing he wanted was for anything to happen to the Varia Guardian. "Find him immediately! He might be hurt already!"

Gokudera could see how stressed Tsuna was about this, and for no reason other than that he didn't want to disappoint the brunet, he said, "I'll search the surrounding properties, Tenth."

_**~~XX~~**_

As expected, Gokudera was quick to find the younger Storm Guardian; way out in dense forest, the silver-haired man was led towards the other's location by pained screams, laughter, and the unmistakable sound of torture. Running as fast as he could, the Vongola Guardian activated his Storm Buckle, Uri leaping up onto his shoulder with a hiss.

Finally, making his way close enough to overhear what was being said, Gokudera started to creep along; he couldn't make his presence known just yet; he had to find out what was going on first.

"It would be only too easy for us to kill you here and now, you little brat."

Gokudera couldn't help but grow angry at this threat, knowing already that whoever had taken Bel was trying to get information out of him. He didn't care that someone was hurting the younger Guardian; all that mattered was that his family's privacy was at stake; if Bel slipped up…

"Tell us right now; what do you know of the Vongola and its allied forces?"

"…Fuck off…" Gokudera had never heard Bel sound so weak before; what were they doing to him? "Not… telling you shit…"

Gokudera flinched as the boy's scream filled the air next, hatred bubbling inside of him as whoever had hold of Bel spoke again; he couldn't forgive _anyone _who sought to harm the Tenth Generation boss.

"Unless you want to lose the other one, too, I suggest you speak up, boy."

Gokudera couldn't stand hearing this anymore, knowing he had to stop this now before Bel _did _speak; sending Uri on ahead, he prepared himself before stepping into the clearing, finally able to see the two men who were holding Bel down on the ground, blood all over him. These two men didn't look like anything special – in fact, they probably _weren't _special as Gokudera's sudden appearance was enough to make them look as if they had seen a ghost.

But if this was the case, how had they managed to get Bel in this state…? Different timelines or not, Bel was still a Varia Officer, an unstoppable force like the storm he symbolised; so how…?

Glaring angrily at the boy's attackers, he grabbed a stick of dynamite, ready to kill them here and now; if it were a fight they were after, they had gotten one.

"You two are the ones I suggest speak up; what are you doing with that brat?" Feeling Uri jump back onto his shoulder, Gokudera wasn't in the mood for bullshit; he wanted to get this over and done with and return to the mansion. "You want information on Vongola? You're not going to get it."

One of the two men standing over Bel sneered. Leaning down, he pulled said boy into his arms, using him as a human shield – a cowardly act, one telling Gokudera that these men truly stood no chance against him. "You wouldn't attack your comrade, would you? Tell us what we want to know, or I'll slit his throat."

Gokudera couldn't help but laugh, his own sneer crossing his face. "You really think I'd ever consider _him _my comrade? No; if it weren't for my boss giving me orders to bring him back, I wouldn't have even bothered coming out here looking for him. Your mistake is thinking I won't throw dynamite with him in front of you." With that said, the Storm Guardian was quick to toss his weapon, waiting for the familiar explosion before he moved forward to tower over the men he had knocked to the ground.

"I'll _never _consider him as a comrade, but my boss does." Leaning down, Gokudera snatched Bel into his arms, well aware that the dynamite had injured him, too. Sliding another stick of dynamite out of its sheathe, he flicked it into the air, saying, "If only for my boss, I'll be taking him back with me. Sayonara."

Throwing Bel over his shoulder, Gokudera heard the other groan in pain, felt the smaller body thrash a little before it fell limp, not another sound escaping the boy's lips. Gokudera was certain the younger had passed out, and he liked it that way; he didn't want to listen to the other's whining on the way back, after all.


End file.
